Karnataka Minister B Nagendra offers to resign amid Rs 89-crore scam allegations
As the Opposition intensifies its attack on the Congress government in Karnataka over the alleged Valmiki Corporation scam, Minister B Nagendra told Chief Minister DK Shivakumar that he is ready to quit.
Karnataka Minister B Nagendra has offered to resign from the Cabinet amid corruption allegations against him in connection with the alleged Rs 89-crore irregularities in the Karnataka Maharshi Valmiki Scheduled Tribes Development Corporation, sources said.
Nagendra conveyed his decision to Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, saying he does not want to cause embarrassment to the Congress party and is willing to step down from the ministerial post, sources added. He was the Tribal Welfare Minister when the scam allegedly happened in 2024.
The minister's move comes amid intensified protests by the opposition BJP, which has been demanding Nagendra’s resignation over the allegations and has announced a 10-day padayatra against the state government.
Nagendra has also reportedly told the Chief Minister that he is confident of securing a clean chit from the court and returning to the Cabinet once the legal proceedings are resolved.
Sources said Nagendra, current Minister for Youth Empowerment and Sports, believes the BJP is apprehensive that his return to the Cabinet could strengthen the Congress in Ballari, where he has political influence.
Chief Minister Shivakumar is expected to discuss Nagendra’s decision with the Congress high command before taking a final call on whether to accept the resignation.
WHAT IS THE VALMIKI CORPORATION CASE?
The alleged Rs 89.63-crore scam in the Karnataka Maharshi Valmiki Scheduled Tribes Development Corporation centres on the diversion of funds through forged cheques, RTGS transactions and fictitious bank accounts.
The case came to light in May 2024 after corporation official P Chandrashekharan died by suicide, leaving behind a note alleging financial wrongdoing and pressure on officials to facilitate the transfer of corporation funds into an unauthorised account.
Nagendra had resigned as minister in June 2024 amid the controversy, when he was the Tribal Welfare Minister in the Siddaramaiah Cabinet. He was recently re-inducted into the Cabinet after Shivakumar took over as Chief Minister.
According to the CBI, Rs 89.63 crore was fraudulently transferred from corporation accounts using forged documents and banking instructions. The money was then allegedly routed through around 600 bank accounts, layered through multiple transactions and converted into cash, bullion and other assets.
The Enforcement Directorate had earlier identified 18 fictitious accounts in Hyderabad allegedly used to receive the funds. Investigators said the accounts were opened using fabricated documents and linked to shell entities and intermediaries.
The ED said around Rs 187 crore belonging to the corporation had been consolidated in an account at Union Bank’s MG Road branch in Bengaluru. Of this, about Rs 89.63 crore was allegedly siphoned off through fraudulent transactions.
The ED also alleged that Rs 20.19 crore of the diverted money was used in connection with the 2024 Lok Sabha election in Ballari, including alleged cash distribution. It further alleged that some funds were routed to liquor traders and that gift cards worth about Rs 1.40 crore were purchased.
These are allegations made by the investigating agencies and have not been finally adjudicated by a court.
NAGENDRA’S ALLEGED ROLE
Nagendra’s alleged role has been central to the political controversy. The ED’s 2024 complaint alleged that he was the primary accused and mastermind behind the diversion and that the corporation’s account was shifted to Union Bank’s MG Road branch under his influence.
The CBI’s chargesheet, filed in June 2026, names Nagendra along with his associate Nekkanti Nagaraj, corporation and government officials, bank officials, middlemen and private individuals. The agency alleges that the group conspired to divert the funds through forged banking documents and a network of accounts.
The Karnataka SIT filed a 3,072-page preliminary chargesheet in August 2024, naming 12 people and reporting the recovery of cash and assets worth nearly Rs 50 crore. The ED separately investigated the alleged money-laundering component, filed a prosecution complaint in 2024 and attached assets under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.
The CBI, which took up the banking-fraud case following a complaint by Union Bank, later charged 30 people with allegedly diverting Rs 89.63 crore through forged cheques and RTGS transactions.